New now tv box

oilmanoilman Posts: 4,529
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the new Now TV box is available from 6th August for £15. It will handle full hd (1080) but Sky will not be providing that yet, but BBC etc can now be seen in full hd.

It has an ethernet cable, and dual band wifi and box has a much more powerful processor.

Possible minor downsides - it no longer has the av out (which I use on a tv where the hdmi in failed). Also, I would be surprised if you could hack the new version and side install Plex.

Overall looks good, but I can't see myself buying it as mine two boxes work fine, and I can't really tell difference between 720 and 1080 anyway.

Comments

  • omnidirectionalomnidirectional Posts: 18,796
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    The new box will be a big improvement in terms of hardware although I was disappointed to read on another forum that it's still locked to the USA's 60Hz standard so the motion judder (especially noticeable on sport) will continue.

    http://www.tvforum.co.uk/forums/post969143#post-969143
  • wakeywakey Posts: 3,073
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    oilman wrote: »
    the new Now TV box is available from 6th August for £15. It will handle full hd (1080) but Sky will not be providing that yet, but BBC etc can now be seen in full hd.

    It has an ethernet cable, and dual band wifi and box has a much more powerful processor.

    Possible minor downsides - it no longer has the av out (which I use on a tv where the hdmi in failed). Also, I would be surprised if you could hack the new version and side install Plex.

    Overall looks good, but I can't see myself buying it as mine two boxes work fine, and I can't really tell difference between 720 and 1080 anyway.

    Really? When it comes to streaming quality the jump from 720p to 1080p is massive even on smaller screens, certainly more so than via traditional broadcast methods. Not that I would ever buy this myself either as what's the point of a box where they lock out competing services so there is never any chance of either Netflix or Amazon appearing on it
  • oilmanoilman Posts: 4,529
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    wakey wrote: »
    Really? When it comes to streaming quality the jump from 720p to 1080p is massive even on smaller screens, certainly more so than via traditional broadcast methods. Not that I would ever buy this myself either as what's the point of a box where they lock out competing services so there is never any chance of either Netflix or Amazon appearing on it

    It's my eyesight that i the problem!
  • MikeOf LBuzzardMikeOf LBuzzard Posts: 458
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    Anybody know if this new box will bring DD5.1 on Sky channels at last, as promised.
  • Trainer99Trainer99 Posts: 252
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    This reviews seems to suggest you can side load Plex:

    https://recombu.com/digital/article/new-now-tv-box-2015-review

    "If you want to stream your own files on the new Now TV Box, you’ll need to enable developer mode and sideload something like Plex or Emby and stream files from there."

    There's is even a screen shot of the Plex icon on the installed apps page:

    http://cms.recombu.com/media/digital/August2015/new-now-tv-2015-19.png
  • ovbgovbg Posts: 1,451
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    wakey wrote: »
    Not that I would ever buy this myself either as what's the point of a box where they lock out competing services so there is never any chance of either Netflix or Amazon appearing on it

    £15 is the answer.

    Where else in the world can you get a box that has of the country's FTA catch-up services, accessible entirely free for that price? Nowhere. This is the cheapest set-top-box on the market in the world. (Well, granted, perhaps in China, but I really have not looked there yet).

    The German version costs £60 or so, and it doesn't have anywhere near as much free stuff.

    Seriously, this is one great value box, especially if the user doesn't want Netflix or Amazon Prime. Even if they don't want Now TV...

    It is also hugely popular with British Expats, who for £15, suddenly have access to all their favourite channels from back home. The BBC and ITV apps even have live streams now.

    It will probably never have Netflix as that is in direct competition, and it will probably never have Amazon Prime, as Amazon are not launching new apps on other platforms that could compete against their Fire TV.

    So, here is a great option for those who want it all, and on a budget. Get a Now TV Box plus AFTV Stick. Less than the cost of an official Roku 3, but it will give you:
    BBC iPlayer
    BBC Sport
    ITV Player
    STV Player
    All 4
    Demand 5
    Now TV
    Amazon Prime
    Netflix
    TVPlayer
    Mediahhh

    (And if you use Smart DNS via the AFTV)
    Hulu
    Showtime (via SlingTV)
    HBO Now
    Sling TV
    ESPN (via Sling TV)
    ABC Family (via Sling TV)
    Disney
    PBS
    Lifetime
    A&E
    History
    Crackle
    AMC
    EPix (via SlingTV)
    Sundance TV (Via Sling TV)


    About the only thing missing from the UK TV Lineup worth mentioning then is UKTV Player (Dave etc), but those can be watched live via TVPlayer and TVPlayer Plus which is scheduled to launch any day now will begin to provide catch-up as well to many channels and additional channels such as British EuroSport amongst more channels.

    This is not bad. NowTV Box (Roku3) + AFTV Stick: £50 before specials
    Roku 3 on its own (with a lot less channels): £70 to £100

    Sure, a Roku streaming stick will also cost £50, but it won't have as many channels.
  • Trainer99Trainer99 Posts: 252
    Forum Member
    Agreed. I have 3 NowTVs (mainly cos when an offer is on it's cheaper to buy a box with a sub than just a sub), a Fire TV and a Fire TV Stick. Oh and 2 Chromecasts.

    Sounds excessive but means I have a spare to take to my girlfriend's or take to my Dad's place in Spain.

    At £15 will get a new NowTV box to replace my main one at home.

    These things are sooooo cheap it's a no brainer.

    EDIT: oh and 2 Apple TVs. These don't get used much although I've just found a new use for these :)
  • gothergother Posts: 14,655
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    ovbg wrote: »
    £15 is the answer.

    Where else in the world can you get a box that has of the country's FTA catch-up services, accessible entirely free for that price? Nowhere. This is the cheapest set-top-box on the market in the world. (Well, granted, perhaps in China, but I really have not looked there yet).

    The German version costs £60 or so, and it doesn't have anywhere near as much free stuff.

    Seriously, this is one great value box, especially if the user doesn't want Netflix or Amazon Prime. Even if they don't want Now TV...

    It is also hugely popular with British Expats, who for £15, suddenly have access to all their favourite channels from back home. The BBC and ITV apps even have live streams now.

    It will probably never have Netflix as that is in direct competition, and it will probably never have Amazon Prime, as Amazon are not launching new apps on other platforms that could compete against their Fire TV.

    So, here is a great option for those who want it all, and on a budget. Get a Now TV Box plus AFTV Stick. Less than the cost of an official Roku 3, but it will give you:
    BBC iPlayer
    BBC Sport
    ITV Player
    STV Player
    All 4
    Demand 5
    Now TV
    Amazon Prime
    Netflix
    TVPlayer
    Mediahhh

    (And if you use Smart DNS via the AFTV)
    Hulu
    Showtime (via SlingTV)
    HBO Now
    Sling TV
    ESPN (via Sling TV)
    ABC Family (via Sling TV)
    Disney
    PBS
    Lifetime
    A&E
    History
    Crackle
    AMC
    EPix (via SlingTV)
    Sundance TV (Via Sling TV)


    About the only thing missing from the UK TV Lineup worth mentioning then is UKTV Player (Dave etc), but those can be watched live via TVPlayer and TVPlayer Plus which is scheduled to launch any day now will begin to provide catch-up as well to many channels and additional channels such as British EuroSport amongst more channels.

    This is not bad. NowTV Box (Roku3) + AFTV Stick: £50 before specials
    Roku 3 on its own (with a lot less channels): £70 to £100

    Sure, a Roku streaming stick will also cost £50, but it won't have as many channels.

    The UKTV app which has DAVE,REALLY,Yesterday and drama works on the firetv box via sideloading, you will need a mouse though.
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